Alfred Swaine Taylor. Professor of Chemistry and Medical Jurisprudence at Guy's Hospital. "On the 25th of February I received the stomach and earth." The Professor gave unhesitating evidence as to the presence of arsenic in the intestines of the deceased. "As the result of all my experiments I am prepared to say that death was produced by arsenic administered to the deceased in large quantities. I am clearly of opinion that the deceased died from arsenic and no other cause."

Mary Butterfield. I am the daughter of the midwife who attended Mrs. Lucas. I went to replace my mother. Lucas had eight pigs. I used to feed them. He came home one day in the week and said he thought his pigs grew well, and he would keep the little cad-pig (the least of the lot) till he married again, and have a green leg of pork for his dinner. He said he should marry this Mary Reeder, and went into the house. So did I. He told deceased he would keep this cad-pig till he married her sister. She said, "That would never be, for they would never allow him to marry my sister." He said. They can't help themselves, if in case I go a little way from home."

Cross-examined.-This was the only time he ever said so. He did not seem very serious either

time.

Ann Ives.-I know Elias Lucas. I went to Haverhill one day in February, and saw him coming into the road, out of the field, with his horses. He put my bundle on the horses, and we walked. He said, "He wished to get rid of his wife, he wished she would die or go away, for he had a bastard child coming."

M&T Carine-I went to see deceused on the Uch I saw Maria Feeder in the garden as I was in the lane. She came to the belge. I was with ber Athen I said to him. Is this your poor Susan's sister?" She sud-Yes." She sali. -Ibige you do not think me guilty of ting my poor sister's life I s-1 Lipe you are pot-bat God only knows. I do not. We both went in, and she said. "Elas caly came home at 1 o'clock last in and said my case was worse than tis, and I said No: his was worse, because he got the arsenie."

Frederick Crisk—I went to Mr. Cross's for some chaff on the 27th of February. Lucas brought it to me. He said he was in great trouble about Lis wife. They said she was poisoned and were going to hang him. I said. "They cannot hang you if you did not do it." Lucas said, D-n it, I'll stand a bottle of gin if I get of this job, to think that I am a single man again: if the girl and I will keep our tongue, they cannot hurt us.'

44

deceased had died from the longcontinued brutality of her husband. For the purpose of viewing the body, the jury proceeded to the late residence of the deceased, where the body was found lying on a table in the back kitchen. When the sheet with which the remains were covered was thrown aside, an expression of horror escaped from all present, the body, from head to foot, being literally covered with bruises and wounds of old and recent date.

Mary Anne Bryant, wife of Charles Bryant, of No. 7, Middlesex Street, Somers Town, said she was second cousin of the deceased woman, and had been frequently in the habit of visiting her. She called upon her on Saturday last, about half-past 1 o'clock, when deceased complained of having been very much ill-used by her husband. While his back was turned, deceased begged witness to ask him to allow her to go to bed, as she had been up all the previous night. She said to witness, "You might say to him, 'Let Susan go and lie down.' Witness did ask her husband, as requested, and he refused to allow her to go to bed, and said she must mind the shop. Witness remained with deceased until half-past 3 o'clock, and during that interval her husband frequently boxed her ears as hard as he could with his open hand; and once, when she got up to serve a customer in the shop, he kicked her behind with great force, because, as he said, she did not move quick enough. The deceased and her husband frequently quarrelled, and he very often struck her. She never struck him again, but used to remonstrate with him and say, "Man alive, don't touch me." Witness mentioned the deVOL. XCII.

ceased's complaint of ill-usage to her husband, and he requested witness to examine her head, remarking that he knew he had hurt her. Witness did so, and found her left ear and all that part of the head dreadfully bruised. There were also cuts upon the head, and the hair was matted with congealed blood that had issued from them. Witness told deceased's husband how much she was injured, but he did not appear to take any notice of it. Witness left the house about half-past 3 o'clock, having first given deceased some warm water to bathe her head. Witness returned about 6 o'clock, and found deceased apparently tipsy. Her husband had just returned home from delivering some bread, and he asked her whether she had supplied certain customers? She replied that she had not; upon which he swore at her, and boxed her ears as hard as he could. He then directed her to put some bread in the shop-window, and while she was in the act of doing so she fell insensible on the shopfloor. Witness ran towards her and saw that the blood was spurting out from a wound on her temple. Witness then called out, "Oh, good God! uncle, cousin is in a fit; pick her up." He replied that he would not. Deceased presently revived a little and walked with witness into the back parlour. While doing so she said, “I am in a fit, and a very bad fit. Don't leave me; for God's sake, don't leave me, Mary Anne." These were the last words she ever ut

tered. Witness wished to put her to bed, but her husband said she should never go into a bed of his again. Deceased was then standing over a sink, and presently her strength appeared to fail, and

E

she sank down upon the floor, with her head resting on the kitchen steps. She lay there insensible for more than two hours, at which time witness's husband came, and he succeeded in persuading Mr. Moir to allow deceased to lie on the children's bed.

Other evidence of the brutality of the husband was given. The constant ill-treatment of the poor woman was well known, but nobody, not even those who were residing in the same house, thought it at all necessary to interfere.

Mr. Watkins, surgeon, who had been called in to attend the deceased, described the condition of the corpse. On stripping the body, he found it covered with bruises and contused wounds, from the crown of the head to the lowest part of the back. On opening the head and removing the skull cap, witness found considerable extravasation of blood on the outer covering of the brain, and upon the right hemisphere of the brain there were five or six ounces of coagulated blood. The brain itself was perfectly healthy and unusually firm, and there was not the slightest effusion in any of the cavities. On opening the chest the lungs were found highly congested, but otherwise free from disease, and the heart and great blood-vessels were in a state of perfect integrity. The stomach, altogether, was healthy, and did not emit the slightest smell of spirituous liquid.

Coroner. What do you consider to have been the immediate cause of death?

Witness.-Compression on the brain, arising from an effusion of blood on its right hemisphere.

Coroner. How was the effusion produced?

Witness. Without doubt by

the external injuries deceased had received. The integuments and muscles of the head were contused in a manner I never saw before. In fact, they were a perfect jelly. (Sensation.)

Coroner. By what means could these contusions have been caused?

Witness. By blows or falls. Continual blows, even with the open hand, would be sufficient to cause them.

The jury returned a verdict of "Manslaughter" against Alexander

Moir.

He was tried on the 9th of March, and was found guilty of manslaughter, the jury adding that, they were of opinion that it was one of a very aggravated character; he was sentenced to be transported for life.

29. DESTRUCTION OF LIMEHOUSE CHURCH.-The beautiful parish church of St. Anne, Limehouse, was totally destroyed by fire.

At an early hour in the morning the attendant who lights the stove fires and attends to the heating of the church, entered the edifice and proceeded with his duties. He had lighted both the furnaces, when he perceived a strong smell of burning wood, and shortly afterwards saw a quantity of smoke issue from the roof. Assistants having been summoned, they ascended the belfry and opened a door over the organ loft leading into a vast chamber, extending over the whole body of the church, and inclosing the space between the flat ceiling and the outer roof of the building. It was instantly perceived that the whole of the north-west corner of this part of the edifice was in flames. The alarmed officers then rang an irregular and discordant peal on the bells. An immense concourse of the inhabitants

at the cost of 35,000l. It pos sessed a magnificent organ, built by Richard Bridge, 1741, and an altar window of painted glass, representing our Saviour's Sermon on the Mount. When the body of the church took fire the flames speedily communicated through the organ loft with the belfry. The woodwork in this portion of the edifice having been consumed, the bells, one of which was of very large size, fell through, and were only prevented from reaching the ground by a very strong stone arch beneath the bell tower. With the fall of the roof and the destruction of the interior fittings, the whole consumable portions of the edifice perished, and in a short time the fire died out for lack of materials, leaving nothing but the calcined ruins of one of the finest parochial buildings in London.

speedily assembled in the churchyard. As it was evident that no effort that could be made in the absence of the fire-engines could be effectual to save the sacred edifice, the parish officials judiciously resolved to save the parochial muniments and records and such other movables as the body of the church contained. The Rev. George Roberts, curate of the parish, headed a large party of gentlemen engaged for this purpose, and by their exertions all the registers and other parochial documents have been fortunately saved. The progress of the flames was so rapid that not a little risk was incurred in this good work; indeed, the central chandelier had only been removed a few minutes when the whole body of the roof fell in with a great crash. Several persons were more or less injured by the falling mass, but happily, owing to the ceiling having given unmistakable evidence of its tottering condition about half a minute before the roof fell, the interior of the church had been in a great measure cleared of those who but very shortly previous had been within it. Several engines had arrived before the roof fell, and a good supply of water was obtained; but, from the great difficulty of getting at the spot where the fire raged, all the efforts of the firemen were fruitless, and Mr. Braidwood, the leader of the force, at once pronounced that any hope of saving the interior of the church was out of the question. When the burning mass forming the roof fell, the destruction of the whole edifice matter of course. The church was one of the most perfect interiors of the period of Queen Anne, it having been designed by Hawksmoor, and erected

followed as a

30. WRECK OF THE ROYAL ADELAIDE-200 LIVES LOST.—The Royal Adelaide, belonging to the City of Dublin Steam Packet Com pany, and running between Cork and London, arrived at Plymouth on Thursday evening: she here landed some passengers and received others, and left the port on Friday morning with about 180 passengers, a crew of 24 men, and a cargo of live pigs and merchandise. As a very strong head-wind was blowing, her non-arrival on Saturday night caused no alarm, but on Sunday afternoon rumours began to be current that a terrible catastrophe had occurred at sea. A pilot, who had taken charge of a merchantman, reported that a large steamer, answering the description of the Royal Adelaide, had passed his ship on Saturday evening. At 11 o'clock the same night, shortly after having passed the Tongue light-ship, about 15

miles from the coast off Margate, his ship passed a large steamer about three-quarters of a mile distant, from which signals of distress were fired in rapid succession. The steamer, from her position, was evidently on the sand, but, as the wind blew a perfect gale, it was quite impossible to render any assistance. They threw up rockets in reply to the signals, in the hope that they might be observed from the shore, but, as the night was very dark and hazy, he believed there was too much reason to fear they had never been seen. The following morning brought confirmation of the catastrophe. The exptain of a screw-steamer reported that about half-past 9 o'clock on Sunday morning, when off the North Foreland, about 12 mes from shore, and between two and three from the Tongue light sing, he observed the wreck of a se steamer on the Tongue sand. the woscher was very stormy, the wni bowing slot a gale from SSF, so that they could only Moonwch with about three-quarton dc a mile of the spot where the From this point, they perwaal cast the masts and funnel wun gom spì everything upon di sapo cha away. Not a word could de son on hard. xan, of the towel was apparently pamas eodcut she was The framework pr 25 medde dates was standing, most be sesso hous at the balwarka 2x4 phe Jaeth were gone. They pon jaetski pa ga dowice the name # Ad de aid not. The mod Ave & de egne of het is **I* plev a wry few

The

the people of the Tongue lightship; but as there were only two or three repetitions, it was supposed that the vessel making them had got off: it is now surmised that the steamer was soon filled with water, and this prevented the firing of more signals: there was a tre mendous sea running at the time, which tore away great pieces of the vessel. It was not until the following morning that the light-ship fired a gun; a boat put off, and the crew were informed that it was feared that a large steamer had been wrecked close at hand. Many boats immediately put off from Margate, but so complete had been the destruction that it was long before the wreck could be discovered; and it seemed that she must have gone to pieces almost instantly. A few of the bodies were picked up in various directions.

GALES AND SHIPWRECKS. Besides the dreadful catastrophe of the Royal Adelaide, the gales which prevailed at this season caused great destruction of life and property. On the 29th, the bark Teresa Jane was lost on the Mew Rocks, near Liverpool, when the master and six of the crew were drowned; and a schooner on the North Rock, with the loss of all hands. On the 30th the ship Howard, 900 tons, with a cargo valued at near 20,000l., was wrecked on the Horse Bank, but the crew were rescued.

A large brig was wrecked off the island of Eday in the Orkneys. The vessel upset, and all hands were lost.

DREADFUL STEAMBOAT DISASTER IN AMERICA. The American papers give an account, but without date, of a dreadful accident to the steamer Orville St. John. She was burnt about four miles below